Dendera Temple: Egypt’s Best Preserved Temple

Dendera temple complex is located about 2.5 kilometers southeast of Dendera, Egypt; and about 60 kilometers north of Luxor opposite the modern town of Qena. It is considered the best-preserved temple in Egypt. There is evidence that the site was originally built by pharaoh Pepi I in the eighteenth dynasty; But the defined fact is that the earliest existing building in the complex today is the mammisi of Nectanebo II – the last of the native pharaohs. Dendera temple is also known as the “Castle of the Sistrum” or House of Hathor.

The whole complex covers an area of 40,000 square meters and is surrounded by a hefty mudbrick-enclosed wall. Dendera Temple complex has also been the main site of ancient chapels & shrines. The complex features likewise the temple of birth of Isis, the sacred lake, the Sanatorium, the mammisi of Nectanebo II, a Christian basilica, the Roman mammisi, the Gateways of Domitian and Trajan, the Braque shrine, and the Roman kiosk.

On the north and east sides are two magnificent portals built in the period of Roman rule. Apart from the great sanctuary, some outstanding monuments stand in the sacred enclosure. Not far from the rear façade of the temple are the badly damaged remains of a small sanctuary; dedicated to the birth of Isis. The surviving reliefs portray Nut, the goddess of the sky, giving birth while sitting on a stool in accordance with the ancient local custom.

Nearby, to the west, is a deep rectangular hollow enclosed by a boundary wall; this is all that remains of the sacred lake typical of all Egyptian sanctuaries; where the priests had to perform their ritual ablutions several times a day. The most interesting remains include a well, a sanatorium dating from the Roman period, a Coptic church, and two mammisi, one Ptolemaic and the other Roman, scattered along the western wall and in the northwest corner of the Temple of Hathor.

Overall, there are three temples to view in the complex:

The Birthing Temple

The birthing temple is also intricately decorated, and reliefs on the side depict the births of gods and Egyptian pharaohs. It is positioned at the front of the complex; across from a display of former statues and partial column pieces found during excavation.

The Temple of Isis

The temple of Isis is situated behind the main temple near the sacred pool. It is small and not as decorative, but still worth a look.

Hathor Temple

Hathor is the Egyptian sky goddess of sexual love, fertility, music, and dancing. She is also the goddess of birth and motherhood. Hathor was the main goddess in the ancient Egyptian religion and she had many roles. She was mainly depicted as a cow to symbolize her maternal and celestial aspects. Gods such as Mut and Isis exceed Hathor but she remained one of the most widely worshipped deities.

The stunning temple of Hathor is considered the largest and most impressive building in the religious complex. It was historically called the temple of Tentyra, with modifications starting up from the middle kingdom; the fact is the existing structure was built during the reign of Ptolemy XII and Cleopatra VII in the late Ptolemaic Empire. Inside the temple, some depictions of Cleopatra VII symbolize Ptolemaic Egyptian art.

At the top of the structure, there is a small temple that is used for rituals to greet the rising sun; as well as another antechamber called the Chapel of Osiris. Inside this chapel, one of the rooms holds a unique ceiling relief, called the Dendera Zodiac. It is considered the only complete “map” of the ancient Egyptian sky. The one at Hathor Temple is a replica, however. The real Dendera Zodiac is on display at the Louvre in Paris, France.

Also: see our tours to Luxor from Here